The week in review

Best collective sigh of relief: Two suspects, John Allen Muhammed and John Lee Malvo, are arrested October 24 in the sniper shootings.

Worst evidence of the tentacles of fear: City and county schools eliminate all outdoor activities on October 23 in response to the reported threat against children.

Worst loss for U.S. Senate: Senator Paul Wellstone of Minnesota is killed in a plane crash October 25.

Best drought report: Reservoirs jump to 75.7 percent full by October 28.

Worst news for carwashes: That's not enough for the city and county to lift restrictions on washing cars.

Worst flashback to the Cold War: The Russian government refuses to name the gas it used to disable Chechen terrorists who held nearly 800 hostages, more than 100 of whom have died from the mystery gas.

Best tout for local wineries: Of the 80 Virginia wineries that may one day make us the "Napa of the East," the October 23 Washington Post profiles Andrew and Patricia Hodson's Veritas Vineyard and Winery in Afton, and Patricia Kluge's Kluge Estate Winery and Vineyard south of Charlottesville.

Best evidence that voter turnout in the November 5 election could be even lower than predicted: WINA reports that two Albemarle County precincts have changed their locations, and the City's Recreation precinct is changed, too.

Best educational opportunity for men toting guns in the woods: Albemarle High School's Community Education Department is offering a hunter safety class November 12-14.

Worst-sounding venue for a fancy gig: The Water Street Parking Garage, where Live Arts will hold its $250 per ticket gala November 2.

Best video debate: The Alcohol Beverage Control and the Foxfield Racing Association screen dueling videotapes at an ABC hearing October 28 that will determine whether Foxfield keeps its liquor license, reports Kate Andrews in the Daily Progress. Both videos make one thing clear: alcohol is consumed at Foxfield.

Best prospects for a shell of a building: Developers, including owner Bill Dittmar, plan to turn the 500,000-square-foot former Frank Ix textile mill into condominiums and retail space, and office and lab space for biotech firms, according to a David Dadurka report in the Progress.

Worst missed photo op: A tractor trailer carrying 68 head of cattle flips on an I-64 entrance ramp October 23. Neither the driver nor her two children are hurt, but six cattle are killed in the crash. A car on I-64 hits one cow, which is not seriously injured. Animal control officers periodically stop traffic during the round-up, which sadly was not captured by Andrew Shurtleff in the Progress.

Best balloon sighting: Three hot-air balloons float over the rarefied air of Farmington October 27.

Best career move for a Progress reporter: Eric Swensen bids adieu to the university beat for a job with the News and Record in Greensboro.